Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1887-04-02
troublesome People.

The world owes an Unreasonable
debt of gratitude to troublesome peo-
pie. They are the true authors of all
progress. Those amiable creatures
who give no trouble to anybody are
simply good for nothing. They let
things go on as they are; and even II
they see there is something amiss,
they make up their minds to bear 1t
for the sake of peace and quietness.
Such spirit of contentment is an
enormous evil. While it prevails, no
mischief can be remedied and no i'm
provement will be made. There
may be grumble now and then, but
that is all. Things will keep at the
old jog trot, or, as is much more like
ly, will 60 from bad to worse, when
one has to do with such sweet and
simple souls. What a blessing it is
that nature produces some men of
quite a different stamp. 1t is not the
slightest use to tell them to be quiet.
Quiet they cannot be. 1t is not in
them. They must be making stir
about everything they see going
wrong and as to silencing them, the
way to do it has not yet been found
out. Geniuses of this kind are the
dread and horror of all the easy-going
crew, who do not like to be disturbed.
Their lazy enjoyment is utterly ruin
ed when such reformers come across
their path.
In vain they plead to be let alone.
Their tormentors have no mercy and
compel them to arise and set things
in better order. None hate more
cordially the whole race of such zeal
OTIS than those who do not care to have
their dooings looked into. Men who
profit by injustice, all who thrive by
means of jobbery, every smooth and
SNUG dissembler who shows a very
respectable face to the world, but
does things on the sly which he' does
not want to be known, the whole
generation of Pharisees, Tartuffes, land
Pecksniffs, cannot find words strong
enough to express their contempt and
adherence for those meddlesome
busybodies who will not let things
rest, who are always giving trouble
and turning the world upside down.
We suffer loss from an overabund
ance of contentment, from too great
love of peace, from a disposition tC
took only on the bright side ofthings
from an amiable tendency to flattel
all our friends, and especially our.
selves. Some people see a church
crowded to the door and up to the
ceiling if there be few dozen scat
tered here and there through the
pews. Some speakers congratulate
congregations on having done mos
admirably when the balance is We
on the wrong side of the account by
the treasurer's showing. Perhap
these things cannot be helped; Blu
yet, on the other hand, they may b.
acquiesced in too easily. The trouble
some men we want are the men VIII
will spare no trouble to put thing
right; not takers, but doors; nc
grumblers, but reformers; not sour il
spirit, but Jealous in spirit men VIII
do not hang back but who push on
men of stout heart and ready hanC
as well as quick eye. Such men Otter
get hard blows, but they dor min
them. They do not always get niue
thanks even from those whose intel
ests they are advancing; but thi
does not discourage them. They ar
men with mission, and they bus
themselves with it in right goo
earnest. We could name one or tw
who are byn meansstrangers anon
ourselves, but we fOrbear. If thei
number were largely multiplied,
would be good thing for us. w
should be followers of John Wesley
shrewd advice: AT it-all at it
always at it," While there is wor
to be done, suffering to be sootheC
sin to be reached, darkness to be di
PEELED, this life of ours ought not
cease to be one in which we, as
were, set ourselves to "trouble til
waters" that thereafter the hour ma
come of healing. -Presbyterian Me
senger.